Fishbowl: Creating a Project Proposal

Online

Catherine: You know I was thinking we need to do
something with our environmental unit. I can't seem to get any
excitement or enthusiasm from the students. It seems like old
hat to them.

Owen: Why don't we add more hands-on? What could we
have them do?

Catherine: Well, we could test the oxygen content of
water. They could test the pH level or chlorine in the
water.

Albert: Hey, I saw some stream monitoring projects on
the Web last week.

Owen: What would they do in stream monitoring that
our kids could do?

Albert: On the Web the kids were using nets to
collect small river life as a way to determine the health of
the river. I was thinking we might be able to use the DuPage
River. We can walk there.

Catherine: Whom do you have to talk to to get
permission to do this work? I wonder if we can just do it on
our own. Do you think Jack (our principal) will let us do
it?

Albert: Why don't I go check the site on the Web?
Maybe there is more information to help us. If I have to, I can
call the forest preserve. Be back in a minute. You guys keep
going.

Owen: Good idea. We also need to get permission from
parents, but that shouldn't be a problem. They like this stuff
and I know the kids would really be excited.

Catherine: We definitely could do our water test
here. It would make the environmental pollution unit more
relevant. You know how we adopted part of the highway? I wonder
if we could adopt a piece of the river?

Owen: You are going to adopt water? Why are you going
to do that?

Catherine: We could make a whole project out of the
ecology of that site. We could study the water quality,
riverbed, and stream bank. We could study erosion and the
plants that grow naturally along the banks.

Owen: Those plants might grow naturally, but they may
not be native to the region. Maybe we could investigate that
just like a prairie study.

This project is just what we are looking for. This page is
all about rivers and even gives the names of people to contact
to get started. They provide directions and allow you to share
your information with other schools and groups. You can upload
the data you collect.

What if we adopt a site on the river?

Catherine: That is what we were talking about while
you were finding the Web site. I think that is a great
idea.

Owen: But we are looking at more than just monitoring
the stream. We are also looking at the ecology. We need to find
out about plants and animals found in that habitat.

Catherine: That is right. We could tie this part into
our plants unit and study native plants, particularly ones that
grow along the riverbanks.

Albert: What would be cool would be to actually
collect seeds and grow plants that we could use to counteract
erosion along the banks. That would give the kids an authentic
task and ownership in the project.

Owen: This is a great project, but I don't see any
connection with technology?

Catherine: Not only that, where is the student
direction? Will they pick and choose where we are going to go
in the river? They are sure to drown themselves if we do!

Albert: We already have the Web site for technology .
. .

Albert: Well, there has to be some experts we could
contact . . .

Albert: Local college professors, ecologists, forest
rangers . . .

Albert: We will be collaborating with other groups of
students, so e-mail will be used.

Catherine: No offense, but I don't see how looking at
a Web site is collaboration.

Albert: When the students share their data and look
for similar causes of pollution, they are collaborating on the
same project.

Owen: Since all the kids are studying the same river
at different sites, they are all dealing with similar problems
and trying to improve the same watershed. It is like one huge
group project that everyone is contributing to at the same
time.

Albert: Not only that, but the communities along the
river affect one another. The towns at the lower end of the
river have to live with everyone's garbage as it flows down the
river.

Catherine: You are right. Can we do something with
the property owners along the river? Wouldn't that be
collaboration?

Owen: Still, it's a good project, but where is the
technology? That is the connection that I don't see.

Albert: Hey, when you do the water test, you have to
use technology. When you post the data to the Web site, you're
not going to send it snail mail. The students have to know how
to use e-mail and Netscape.

Catherine: They might even make their own Web pages
that we could post.

Albert: If we do find some experts to help us, it
would be a lot easier to communicate using e-mail or a chat, if
the district will let us.

Owen: I'm excited about this project. But, what are
we going to expect students to know and be able to do as a
result of this unit?

Albert: The students will know about water quality
and the elements of a river environment. . . .

Albert: They should end up knowing about pollution
and the effects on the river environment.

Catherine: The unit will meet our technology goals.
The kids will know how to use e-mail, access a Web site and
post information to a Web site.

Owen: They will also be using technology to solve a
problem. They will also be using the Web for research. Both of
those tasks are tech goals that we have for our students.

Catherine: Won't students have to select specific
tests and determine the plants that will be grown? That is the
student direction to start with. As they collaborate with other
classes, they will have to determine what they need to do and
how to do it.

Albert: That is good, but I was thinking we were
going to do this to actually find a way to make the water
cleaner. After students study the water and monitor it, maybe
they need to make a proposal to the city or community to make a
difference. That is certainly student direction.

Catherine: It's also an authentic task.

Owen: Hope we don't start something we can't finish.
We might get chased out of town by some business.

Albert: That won't be a problem. They will be in the
junior high by that time.

Catherine: Let's look at the format we are supposed
to use and see how much we have already figured out ...

Catherine: Okay, it's grade 5.

Owen: The subjects are science and math.

Catherine: We could even do something with social
studies like the history of the river. But, we should file this
idea away for future reference. We're getting carried away.

Owen: We brainstormed the learner outcomes a few
minutes ago. All we need to do is go back in our chat log and
copy and paste them.

Albert: The authentic task is asking the students to
monitor the river, identify the causes of pollution, and make a
presentation of their findings to the community.

Owen: Don't forget they are going to be growing
plants and transplanting them to the riverbanks. They will also
be collaborating with other classes and posting their data to
the Web site.

Catherine: How are we going to hook the kids into
needing to accomplish this task?

Owen: No problem. They will love going into the water
and looking for the animals.

Albert: That is right, but that is not engaged
learning. We need to come up with a reason for them to feel a
need and desire to do this, rather than doing it just for fun.
After the first time they go in the water, they won't be as
interested if they don't have a "bigger" purpose to continue
the task.

Catherine: Why don't we invite someone from the
forest preserve or somebody from that Web site to come into the
room and explain the pollution problems in the river. After the
kids learn about the problem, he could invite them to
participate in the project.

Albert: That is right. It makes it authentic for the
kids. They will feel like they are doing something important
and making a difference. They will have to commit to seeing the
project through and completing the tests.

Catherine: We're done. We already talked about
student direction and best use of technology. I'll write this
up and e-mail it to our facilitator. We can meet again when we
get our feedback and need to revise our work.

Fermilab LInC is sponsored by the Fermilab Education Office and the Fermilab Friends for Science Education and supported in part by the Office of High Energy Physics, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy, the Illinois State Board of Education and the National Science Foundation. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Department, State or Foundation.